Five Emperor Coins

"Ah, my head hurts!"

Feng Xi'er opened her eyes and saw the faint morning sunlight.

Her expression changed, and she immediately waved her hand, trying to cast a spell to protect herself.

But the emptiness within her body washed over her, leaving Feng Xi'er's little face ashen.

At this point, she was not far from running out of oil and extinguishing her lamp.

If that darkness had not inexplicably stopped eroding her, she would have died long ago.

Later... she seemed to have run out of strength and fainted. Why had she appeared here again?

"Colonel, you're awake?"

Zhong Shenxiu had gauze wrapped around his chest, with blood still seeping through. Leaning on a wooden staff, he came to Feng Xi'er's side.

"Su Daozhi, it's you?! You're actually still alive?"

Seeing that it was one of her own, Feng Xi'er relaxed slightly. After checking her body, she relaxed even more. "What exactly happened afterward?"

"This subordinate doesn't know."

Zhong Shenxiu answered with a bitter smile. "This subordinate was stabbed through by a sword and originally thought he wouldn't survive either. After waking up, however, he found that the wound had missed the vital point near his heart by a few inches. That was how he luckily kept his life... Later, when I heard a tremendous crash coming from the altar, I bandaged my wound and hurried over. I only found the Colonel..."

"The altar, the ritual?"

Feng Xi'er's expression shifted as she looked toward the altar, only to see a field of rubble. She grew even more bewildered. "That head was extraordinarily powerful. It was eighty percent likely the First Generation Count... It could have annihilated all of us with a single glance, and we had no hope of resisting. Could it be that the ritual succeeded and then it withdrew? But if so, why would it leave Su Daozhi and me alive? Could it be... the ritual failed, and it was completely destroyed by the backlash?"

She faintly felt that the second possibility was very likely. Otherwise, there was no way to explain what had happened.

Unfortunately, the area was polluted by the aura of an ancient god and belonged to an unobservable land. Recklessly using Daoist arts to pry into it would simply be courting death.

"I never thought that after this battle, every member of the Black Armored Iron Cavalry except you would lay down their lives for the country."

Feng Xi'er sighed and said to Su Daozhi, "You saved my life, which is a great merit. I shall temporarily promote you to acting Company Commander of my Black Armored Iron Cavalry. Once I return, I will clear your name as a convict and immediately make your position permanent."

"Thank you, Colonel. However, a fortunate man is protected by Heaven. This subordinate wouldn't dare claim credit!"

Zhong Shenxiu was overjoyed and hurriedly saluted again and again.

He also knew that Feng Xi'er's promise was mostly meant to placate him. After all, this woman's strength was at a low ebb. If he harbored any crooked thoughts, this weak woman really wouldn't be able to resist.

In fact, with his current strength, even Feng Xi'er at her peak could be toyed with in all eighteen ways.

With this great merit and the promise of release from his convict status, even the young Su Daozhi of the past would have had no choice but to obediently sell his life.

As for the promotion? At this moment, who else was there in the entire Black Armored Iron Cavalry besides him?

Oh, the Black Armored Iron Cavalry is a cavalry unit, and the Company Commander has an actual official position. That's why she said acting, and that she would make it permanent only after clearing my name. As expected of a daughter of an Aristocratic Clan—even in a situation like this, she still distinguishes everything with crystal clarity...

Zhong Shenxiu was bursting with the urge to complain, but forcibly held it in. He found several water flasks and fed Feng Xi'er some water, after which the two of them ate a few pieces of dry rations.

When the sun gradually rose, they heard a commotion coming from below the mountain.

"Colonel! Colonel!"

Several dozen people surged over. At their head was Xu Wenling. When they saw the corpses of those who had mounted the forward interception, their hearts chilled.

After suppressing the camp panic, Xu Wenling saw that Feng Xi'er had not returned all night and knew something was wrong. He hurriedly brought people to provide support, desperately hoping that nothing had happened to Feng Xi'er.

Otherwise, with both major offenses weighing on him, he was afraid he would be stripped of everything.

Although the soldiers in camp were nearly exhausted and unable to move, he still had his own personal guards. Like the Black Armored Iron Cavalry, they had been well fed and given the finest treatment, and remained utterly loyal even when faced with a great upheaval.

He gathered these men and hurried to provide support, but unfortunately, he was far too late.

If Zhong Shenxiu had casually formed a thought, this little Feng'er would have been done for.

"We're here,"

Zhong Shenxiu called out loudly.

Before long, Xu Wenling arrived with his men. When he saw the two of them, he was stunned as well.

Xu Wenling immediately dropped to one knee. "This subordinate arrived late with the rescue. I ask that Your Excellency forgive me."

"Forget it. At least you were of some use."

Feng Xi'er waved her hand and put on a dignified bearing.

After meditating and regulating her breathing for a while, her magic power had recovered somewhat, but she still lacked confidence. Thus, she was much more amiable toward Xu Wenling. "Although my cavalry suffered heavy losses this time, we did at least foil the enemy's conspiracy..."

Was she saying that there would be merit to share?

Xu Wenling's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly said loudly, "What orders does Your Excellency have? This subordinate will not shrink even from ten thousand deaths!"

Black Mountain Fortress.

The atmosphere abruptly turned grim, and bloodstains still remained on quite a few patches of ground.

Last night's camp panic was a completely tangled mess. Afterward, when they took stock, there were twenty-seven corpses in addition to the missing men and horses, dozens of severely wounded, and hardly a single soldier without some minor injury.

Zhong Shenxiu walked into the military camp and immediately sensed that something was different.

Even in the void, in shadowy corners and dark places, it seemed that some lingering spirits remained. They had been sensed by him as a [Shepherd].

What reassured him somewhat was that among these lingering spirits, he did not find those two dogs.

As soon as they returned to camp, Feng Xi'er was naturally invited to the commander's tent, where she received the finest care.

Benefiting from this, Zhong Shenxiu also received treatment from a military doctor.

When the military doctor saw the wound, he was immediately astonished and exclaimed that Zhong Shenxiu had incredible luck.

Although a sword had pierced straight through his chest, it had missed the vital point. Even among a hundred or a thousand wounded on a battlefield, one might not find a single person with such luck.

Zhong Shenxiu naturally laughed it off and muddled through the matter. After sending away the medical officer, he casually grabbed a little soldier, tossed him several black coins, and told him to bring Huang Xie and Er Ha over.

These black copper coins were called Black Emperor Coins, the common currency of the Second Yanhan Empire.

Above the Black Emperor Coin was the White Emperor Coin, cast from silver and worth a hundred times as much as the Black Emperor Coin.

Above the White Emperor Coin was the Red Emperor Coin!

Red meant gold. Gold was never perfectly pure; only immortal masters who cultivated the Dao and refined elixirs could extract true red gold to mint into coins. Most such coins were used as imperial rewards.

All three were currencies of the mortal world.

It was rumored that above the Red Emperor Coin was an even higher grade, the Yellow Emperor Coin. Yellow meant talismans. The so-called Yellow Emperor Coin was a talisman coin, a currency used by cultivators.

As for the final Green Emperor Coin, Su Daozhi had never heard of it, and naturally neither had Zhong Shenxiu.

In this era, a single Black Emperor Coin was worth quite a bit. It was more than enough as a tip for running an errand.

The little soldier, whom Zhong Shenxiu did not recognize, left grinning from ear to ear. Before long, he returned with the two dogs.

"Huang Xie, Shiqi..."

Zhong Shenxiu greeted them with a smile and went straight to the point. "I have rendered great service. My next step will probably be to follow Colonel Feng to Fufeng City and take up a post. Are you willing to come with me?"